Italian Maestro Francesco Meneghello and theologian Pierangelo Sequeri collaborated on the official hymn for the Jubilee Year of 2025, which the Dicastery for Evangelization has just released.
Their piece won the competition, which launched in September 2022 and closed on March 25.
Entitled “Pilgrims of Hope,” also the theme of the Jubilee Year, Meneghello and Sequeri’s song is one of 270 entries from 38 different countries. These include four from the Philippines and one from Hong Kong.
The songs were judged by an international commission that met in Rome on April 18.
The Pontifical Musical Chorus, the Vatican’s Sistine Choir, has produced a recording of the song, conducted by Maestro Msgr. Marco Pavan. Musical scores will be released soon.
The dicastery described the theme as “a song charged with the hope of being freed and supported… imbued with the hope that it will reach the ears of the One from whom all things flow.”
Meneghello and Sequeri perfectly integrated the theme “Pilgrims of Hope” into their work, invoking biblical reflections from the Book of Isaiah.
“The themes of creation, fraternity, God's tenderness and hope in our destination resonate in a language, which although not "technically" theological, is in substance and the allusions so that it rings eloquently in the ears of our time,” explained the dicastery.
It has been the Catholic Church’s tradition to produce songs for liturgical purposes to mark the most important events and celebrations.
“The Sacred Scriptures are steeped in song, and the Psalms are a striking example: the prayers of the people of Israel were written to be sung, and it was in song that the most human events were presented before the Lord,” said the Dicastery of Evangelization on the official website for the Jubilee Year.
Listen to the Jubilee hymn on YouTube and download an MP3 file here.- Luke Godoy
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
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